Caesars were a Swedish indie rock band from Stockholm, formed in 1995. In their native country, the band was originally known as Caesars Palace, a name which was changed to avoid conflicting with the name of the Las Vegas hotel.[1] In the rest of Scandinavia they are known as Twelve Caesars.

Caesars
Caesars performing in April 2008
Caesars performing in April 2008
Background information
Also known as
  • Twelve Caesars (1995–1999)
  • Caesars Palace (2000–2002)
OriginStockholm, Sweden
Genres
Years active1995–2012, 2017–2019
Labels
Past membersJoakim Åhlund
David Lindquist
Nino Keller
César Vidal
Jens Örjenheim
Klas Åhlund

Career

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Outside of Sweden, the band are best known for the song "Jerk It Out", which was originally featured in the snowboarding video Afterbang in 2002, as well as the Electronic Arts video games SSX 3 and FIFA Football 2004, and on the PlayStation 2 game LMA Manager 2005. The song also appeared in the Wii games Just Dance and Dance Dance Revolution SuperNova, and in the Wii version of Samba de Amigo as downloadable content.[2] It has also been the backdrop of television advertisements for brands such as iPod (2005)[3] and Renault (2009). The song is featured on the band's 39 Minutes of Bliss (In an Otherwise Meaningless World), Paper Tigers, and Love for the Streets albums. The song is featured in episode 2 of Super Pumped and episode 6 of Ted Lasso.

Their song "We Got to Leave" is the theme song for the television series Confessions of a Matchmaker.[4] The song also appears in films such as John Tucker Must Die and The Benchwarmers.

The album Strawberry Weed was released in Scandinavia on 5 March 2008. The 24-track long double album was produced by Ebbot Lundberg from Soundtrack of Our Lives. A significant difference from previous albums was that guitarist Joakim Åhlund and drummer Nino Keller shared vocal duty with César Vidal.[5]

In an interview on Sveriges Radio P3 on February 13, 2012, Joakim Åhlund said that the band is on hiatus until further notice.[6]

In December 2017, Caesars played a surprise reunion gig in Stockholm, their first since 2009. In 2018, the band performed in Stockholm's Popaganda Festival. The band played several shows in Sweden through 2019 before entering a second hiatus.

Band member Joakim Åhlund is also a founding member of the Teddybears.

Band members

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Final lineup
  • César Vidal – lead vocals, guitar (1995–2012, 2017–2019)
  • Joakim Åhlund – guitars, backing and occasional lead vocals (1995–2012, 2017–2019)
  • David Lindqvist – bass (1996–2012, 2017–2019)
  • Nino Keller – drums, backing and occasional lead vocals (2000–2012, 2017–2019)
Former members
  • Jens Örjenheim – drums (1998–2000)
  • Klas Åhlund – keyboards, various instruments, production (1998–2002; session/touring musician)

Discography

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Albums

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Singles

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  • 1995 – Shake It 3-track EP: "Shake It" / "Odd Job" / "Born Cool [7-inch Dolores]
  • 1996 – Rock De Puta Mierda 7-track EP: "Phenobarbital" / "3D-TV" / "Automatic" / "Crap-thinker" / "This Man, This Monster" / "Pupo Diavolo" / "You're My Favorurite"
  • 1998 – "Kick You Out"
  • 1998 – "Sort It Out"
  • 2000 – "From the Bughouse" / "Punkrocker" (Original version) / "Love Bubble"
  • 2000 – "Crackin' Up"
  • 2000 – "Fun 'n' Games"
  • 2000 – "Only You" [Promo]
  • 2002 – "Jerk It Out" / "Out of My Hands" / "She's a Planet"
  • 2002 – "Over 'fore It Started" / "Sparky"
  • 2002 – "Candy Kane" / "Artificial Gravity"
  • 2002 – "Get Off My Cloud" (Rolling stones cover)/ "Bound and Dominated" LP-single from Dolores singelklubb 300EX
  • 2003 – "Jerk It Out", released 7 April 2003; re-released 18 April 2005
  • 2005 – "We Got to Leave" / "Longer We Stay Together"
  • 2005 – "Paper Tigers" / "Up All Night"
  • 2005 – "It's Not the Fall That Hurts"
  • 2007 – "No Tomorrow" / "Every Road Leads to Home"
  • 2008 – "Boo Boo Goo Goo"

References

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  1. ^ Gundersen, Edna (25 April 2005). "Caesars cut to core with 'Paper Tigers'". USA Today. Gannett Company. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  2. ^ "Samba De Amigo song pack 3 released!". Escalation Studios. 21 December 2008. Archived from the original on 12 October 2013. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  3. ^ Montgomery, James (29 April 2005). "Sweden's Caesars: Jerking Soon At A Venue Near You". MTV. Viacom. Archived from the original on April 6, 2015. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  4. ^ "Confessions of a Matchmaker". Hollywood.com. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  5. ^ "Musiklusten är tillbaka för Caesars" [Music lust is back for Caesars]. Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish). Schibsted. 28 February 2008. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  6. ^ Åhlund, Joakim (13 February 2012). "Jocke Åhlund: "Jag vill bygga hela ljudvärlden, spela alla instrument"" [Jocke Åhlund: "I want to build entire audio world, playing all instruments"]. Musikguiden i P3 (Interview) (in Swedish). Interviewed by Iman Hazheer. P3. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
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